For Sale By Owner - A Good Idea?

FSBO (pronounced fizz-bo), or For Sale By Owner, is a way of selling your home without the use of a professional real estate agent or broker. The idea behind FSBO is that by selling your home yourself, you save the approximate 6% that would be the agents’ commission.

6% may not sound like a lot, but it can add up, especially on more expensive homes. But before you run off and decide to sell your home FSBO, you must remember that to get a savings like that, there must be a cost. So what’s the catch? Selling FSBO is hard. A lot harder.

Only about 10% of sellers that decide to do FSBO are successful at it. And not all of them end up saving themselves money. FSBO sellers often end up accepting a lower price for their home than they would with an agent.

There are of course other issues as well. Can you afford to make selling your home your full-time job? Because for a lot of FSBO sellers, that’s exactly what it is. Do you have the time and capital to spend on the marketing, advertising, inspections, paperwork, phone calls, showings, and problems that come up when any home is sold?

Selling with a professional agent also has other advantages. An agent can get your home listed on the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) and other popular websites where not only homebuyers but also other agents can easily find it. Professional real estate agents also have an extensive network that allows them to more easily find a buyer.

So before you decide to sell your home yourself, thoughtfully consider just how much time and effort you can spare for selling your home, as well as how important it is that your home sell sooner rather than later.

Testimonials

11/2018

We bought our Kona home in November 2018 and are so grateful we worked with Lance and Kimi. We started working with them in the spring of 2018, when we visited Kona and Lance took us to see many properties and informed us about microclimates and different neighborhoods. Then we headed backed to Boston and Lance kept in touch with us about listings, the market, and the vog. One time he texted us a picture of a gorgeous clear day, and a few days later he texted a picture of a voggy day, saying he wanted us to see that too - that's the kind of people Lance and Kimi are, honest and upfront. Once we found a home their guidance and hard work were absolutely indispensable to us. Great negotiating skills, responsiveness to our many questions and concerns via text, email and Skype, and through the entire closing process holding our hands and digging up and/or checking all documents with our best interests in mind. There was so much to keep track of and so much we weren't even aware of that needed to be checked, we are beyond grateful that we worked with Lance and Kimi. They are experienced, knowledgeable, efficient, thorough, professional, and kind.
You can't go wrong with Lance and Kimi!

Denise & Joe

2/19/2019
Lance, we love that your client has an agent who cares about them the way you do.
Love the idea of sharing the shifting market guide this way, and love even more your commitment to guiding and advising your clients through the buying/selling process. We are grateful to be your partner!
Yours truly
Keeping Current Matters Charlotte P. H.

8/31/2018
What an outstanding experience we had with Lance Owens and Kimi Nagatoshi!! We gave Lance our thoughts about what we might be looking for in a new home on Hawaii Island and he showed us quite a number of places that fit that description. We hadn't thought we'd actually buy on that trip -- we were really only trying to see what we could afford -- but with what Lance showed us, we ended up putting an offer in after only 3 days of looking. And then Kimi went to work helping us through the entire process of the inspection, counteroffers, and, ultimately, the purchase. It's our dream home and we have both Lance and Kimi to thank!
Karl and Mary

5/18/2016
Aloha Lance!
Thank you all for your “local kine” support of the Big Island Chocolate Festival this year. It was really very successful and your support helped us keep the ball rolling as we brought tickets in. I will let you know how much was raised for the schools, but wanted you to see this online news story that mentions your sponsorship. Hawaii 24/7 has quite a large readership. Thanks again!
http://www.hawaii247.com/2016/05/15/big-island-chocolate-festival-names-top-confections/
Julie Ziemelis-Owner Ziemelis Communications Integrated Communications Expert-PR

2/29/2016
In 15+ years of Hawaii Mortgage Company dealing with thousands of realtors, it is very rare when you come upon agents who really care and love what they do and want to make the transaction as wonderful as possible for all parties involved. Lance and Kimi go above and beyond for their clients and the mortgage professionals (like us!) who they are working with. In a world full of mortgage regulations, Lance and Kimi make sure to keep everyone on track of the timelines to ensure closing on time, which benefits both the sellers and buyers.
We are lucky to work with them and look forward to many more transactions together in the future!
Maura K. Shannon
Manager / Mortgage Loan Originator
NMLS #339190
Hawaii Mortgage Company
NMLS #232582
443 Portlock Road
Honolulu, Hawaii 96825
Tel: 808-988-6622
Fax: 808-988-7722
Maura K. Shannon